BERKELEY - After picking up three wins out of five games across the country in Florida last weekend, the California softball team begins three straight weeks of in-state tournaments this week, starting with the Fresno State Kickoff Invitational from Feb. 14-16 at Margie Wright Diamond on the Fresno State campus. 
 
The Golden Bears will be joined in the tournament with fellow in-state foes Saint Mary's and Cal Poly, along with Fordham. The Bears will play the Gaels twice as part of the five games spread out over the course of three days with two doubleheaders. 

Through five games, Cal boasts five batters hitting over .300 - Amani Bradley (.444), Kacey Zobac (.357), Makena Smith (.333), Lauren Espalin (.313) and Mikayla Coelho (.313). Bradley hit safely in all five games and heads to Fresno riding a five-game hitting streak. A true freshman, Zobac slugged her first career home run in the first meeting against Michigan State last week, and spent the weekend behind the dish at catcher. Cal's RBI leader in 2019, Smith enjoyed a three-hit game in one of the meetings against the Spartans. Espalin garnered a three hits in the same game, adding in two RBI. In the tournament finale, Coelho's two-run double was the difference maker in Cal's 3-1 victory over Penn State. 

One of the youngest teams in the country, Zobac is one of 11 newcomers in 2020, including 10 true freshmen. Junior pitcher Chloe Romero transferred to Cal after spending her freshman season at the University of Texas. 

Zobac wasn't the only newcomer to contribute in the season's first tournament. D'Asha Saiki and Kennedy Thomas played in all five games in their first collegiate tournament. Saiki brought some power to the lineup, posting a slugging percentage of .417. She recorded Cal's first triple of the season. Thomas currently boasts an OPS of .833 with a team-leading five walks. After coming to Cal as a catcher, Thomas played shortstop all weekend. Coming in as a pinch hitter, Candace Yingling slapped an RBI single in her first at-bat at Cal. 
 
Losing three of their four pitchers from last season to graduation, sophomore Alexandra Perez carried the load last weekend as Cal's only returning pitcher from 2019. After logging 45 innings of work during her freshman campaign, Perez pitched 28 innings at FIU, compiling a 3-1 record, an ERA of 2.00 and 11 strikeouts. She threw a complete game in Cal's 3-1 win over Penn State to conclude the weekend, and the Nittany Lions run was unearned.

Karlee Sparacino kicked off the scoring in 2020 for the Bears. She blasted a solo homer in Cal's season opener against Florida International. In the next game, she recorded her and Cal's second RBI of the season with a double against Michigan State. All of Sparacino's hits last weekend were extra base hits. 

The Bears remain in California for the next two tournaments, heading further south next week for the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Palm Springs and then the Judi Garman Classic in Fullerton the following week. Sandwiched between the tournaments is a contest at Saint Mary's on Feb. 19. Cal will be joined by Auburn, Missouri, Nebraska and New Mexico next week at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic. 

Cal All-Time Against The Tournament Field
• Cal will face four opponents in five games at the Kickoff Invitational - host Fresno State, Saint Mary's, Cal Poly and Fordham. The Bears will face the Gaels twice over the course of the three-day tournament that features two doubleheaders. 
• Fresno State leads the all-time series against the Bears, 64-49, but Cal won the last meeting, 7-0, in 2018. The Bears have consistently dominated the series with Saint Mary's taking an all-time record of 61-2 against the Gaels into Fresno. Cal also owns a solid 24-8 all-time record against Cal Poly, including a 9-1 victory in the most-recent meeting in 2018. The Bears have never lost to Fordham in seven meetings. Cal beat Fordham, 9-0, last season.  
• The most-recent meeting for Cal against the field was a 2013 meeting against Syracuse, a 8-1 loss to the Orange, the only time the Bears have been defeated by Syracuse in school history. 

Last Week At The Felsberg Invitational
The Bears went 3-2 at last weekend's Felsberg Invitational to open the 2020 campaign. On opening night, Cal squared off against host Florida International, and the Panthers emerged victorious, 6-1. The start of the second day was delayed due to rainy weather, but the Bears' bats were red hot against Michigan State once play began. Cal defeated the Spartans, 11-6, including Kacey Zobac logging her first career home run. The Bears posted double-digit runs against Michigan State the next day, a 10-4 win, before Alexandra Perez logged a complete-game victory over Penn State, 3-1, to end the weekend.  

Bradley Enjoying A Five-Game Hitting Streak
Always finding ways to get on base, Amani Bradley will ride a season-opening five-game winning streak into this weekend's tournament. She was the only Bear to hit safely in all five games last weekend. 
Bradley's biggest game of the weekend was the second meeting against Michigan State, a 10-4 Cal win. The Bears top three batters in the lineup - Bradley, Makena Smith, Lauren Espalin, recorded three hits each. Bradley also collected two RBI in that game. In Cal's first win over Michigan State, Bradley notched two hits, two runs and an RBI.  
For the weekend, Bradley went 8-for-18, good for a .444 batting average. She also added a stolen base. 

Freshmen Make Their Presence Felt 
With 10 true freshmen on the 2020 squad, the rookies needed to contribute right off the bat last weekend. Kacey Zobac slugged her first career home run in the first meeting against Michigan State last week, and batted 5-for-14 for the weekend. Her .357 batting average ranks second on the team. Her .643 slugging percentage is second among Bears with more than one at-bat, and her five RBI are tied for the team lead. In addition to Zobac, D'Asha Saiki, Aleia Agbayani and Kennedy Thomas played in all five games in their first collegiate tournament. Agbayani's four runs scored lead her team. Saiki brought some power to the lineup, posting a slugging percentage of .417. She recorded Cal's first triple of the season. Thomas currently boasts an OPS of .833 with a team-leading five walks. Coming in as a pinch hitter, Candace Yingling slapped an RBI single in her first at-bat at Cal. Sophie Medellin made three starts, as well. 
    
Perez Puts In Work As Pitcher 
After totaling 45 innings of work as a freshman in 2019, Alexandra Perez logged 28 innings at the Felsberg Invitational last weekend. Perez went 3-1, posting an ERA of 2.00 along with 11 strikeouts. In the tournament finale, she garnered a complete game 3-1 victory over Penn State, and the Nittany Lions' run was unearned. A native of Temecula, Calif., Perez also spent time in the field last season as a utility player.